The European Tour...what is going on??

[MashieNiblick]

Is nobody prepared to face up to the reason why sponsors cannot be attracted to European Tour?

Simply put the game of golf does not sell product in Europe and particularly UK, in the same way that it does in USA.

It is not a pull for corporate hospitality, again unlike USA, and the players do not have sufficiently high profile to attract either individual sponsorship or attention to the sport. The BBC considers golf to be so low profile that, apart from the Majors, it rarely bothers even mentioning the results of tournaments in either Europe or America and newspaper coverage is minimal.

If you were in charge of the promotional budget for a large company would you commit a significant part of it to sponsoring an event that will receive so little coverage?

Forget the size of the crowd, it is irrelevant, the Moto GP will probably get a bigger attendance than Wentworth and how much media coverage will that event get.

Until golf achieves a much broader appeal it is extremely unlikely to attract the sponsorship needed to hold events again in this country.

I see the argument, but isn't it possible than an English Open or British Masters at a top course with a good European field would get good sponsorship, attendance and coverage? Certainly more than the recent event in Singapore.

Interestingly Wayne Riley has written about the lack of top tournaments in England in the current issue of GM.

 

[Deleted member 18588]

I see the argument, but isn't it possible than an English Open or British Masters at a top course with a good European field would get good sponsorship, attendance and coverage? Certainly more than the recent event in Singapore.

Interestingly Wayne Riley has written about the lack of top tournaments in England in the current issue of GM.

Attendance, yes, but the gate receipts alone would not fund a top event.

Coverage and sponsorship go hand in hand. After all sponsors are not altruistic in their motives, they sponsor players and events to increase market awareness of their company, its products and services.

The game of golf unfortunately does not have a sufficiently high profile to get the media coverage to make sponsorship a commercially viable proposition for most companies.

We, on the forum, are all enthusiastic but the public at large remain, at best, indifferent to our sport. Just compare the general public's interest in Wimbledon with that shown for the Open.

 

[GB72]

Honestly, I cannot see the European Tour getting back on track unless there is suddenly a golden crop of players who stick with Tour and help rebuild the image.

Personally I would suggest that the other tours agree to a world tour under the control of the PGA in exchange for each tour holding one event aside from the Majors. The PGA can then brand their end of tour playoff as a world championship whilst the other tours can be qualifying groups for the World Events, which they pretty much are now.

In competition terms, the PGA has won and the other tours would be better served trying to get as much as they can out of the surrender.

 

[freddielong]

The tour should call the bluff of the players and change the selection criteria for the Ryder cup say they have to play a certain number of European tour events and bring all the events back to Europe. I remember when the race to Dubai started the USPGA were worried but to me now at the moment the European tour is dead I don't watch it on TV anymore.

 

[MadAdey]

A lot of companies out there sponsor events to get to areas off limits to the general public. THey know that golf does not get the type of coverage as other sports like football. Take a big Premier League match like the Chelsea V Liverpool last weekend. That would be getting beamed all over the world probably getting at least 10 times the viewers that a Tour event will get.

 

[c1973]

The Race To Dubai should have an entry criteria. Perhaps a decent minimum amount of European Tour events competed in (and completed btw) say 8 for example? Although I doubt it would make a difference.

The European Tour has become a feeder tour to the PGA. In part this is down to player greed, forgetting where they got their chance and chasing the money. But who can blame them? You have to admire past 'greats' like Monty & Seve for playing most of their golf on the European Tour.

 

[GB72]

Not really sure The Ryder Cup matters that much. Whilst I am sure that the top pros love to play in it, I would be hard pressed to think that any would give up the money and lifestyle on the PGA tour just to qualify.

 

[Deleted member 18588]

Not really sure The Ryder Cup matters that much. Whilst I am sure that the top pros love to play in it, I would be hard pressed to think that any would give up the money and lifestyle on the PGA tour just to qualify.

Absolutely right!

Of course they would make all the right sort of noises but at the end of the day they are professionals i.e. they play golf for money.

 

[triple_bogey]

'cough cough'.................maybe the ET needs Tiger Woods? :rofl:

 

[Doon frae Troon]

Either a lot of youngsters on here or older guys with selective memories.

Top Pro's will always play where the money is. Seve was a good example.

 

[GB72]

Absolutely right!

Of course they would make all the right sort of noises but at the end of the day they are professionals i.e. they play golf for money.

And if europe put out weakened teams due to stricter qualifying criteria then the competition loses its lustre, tv money and sponsorship etc drop. The European Tour needs the big name players way more than they need the Tour and so qualification for the Ryder Cup or the Race to Dubai will always be tweaked to ensure that the big names are there irrespective of how often they play in europe

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Theses co-sanctioned events out in Asia are big for the tour coffers and so the European Tour are not going to back out of them now. There have always been events on the European Tour (St Omer, Madeira) that have never been that big but they are in Europe and while they won't attract the big names, the winner gets an exemption and so will attract a competitive field of the lower echelons trying to win that lucrative two year pass.

What are the tour to do? If the sponsors aren't here in the UK the tour will never put an event on and so the big names wont come. It can't be driven the other way round.

 

[mashleyR7]

All this talk of how poor the Tour is, I'm working at home watching The Maderia Open. The course looks like a mown daisy field, how can this place get an event when there are far better course in more accessible place that would potentially get bigger crowds?

 

[Stuey01]

I hardly watch the euro tour. I probably wouldn't go to many events even if there were more available. Golf is better on TV anyway IMO and because the PGA tour is on in the evening it's just more convenient. During the day I'm busy doing other stuff, like going to work, spending time with my family or actually playing golf, all of which trump watching golf.

 

[cookelad]

I hardly watch the euro tour. I probably wouldn't go to many events even if there were more available. Golf is better on TV anyway IMO and because the PGA tour is on in the evening it's just more convenient. During the day I'm busy doing other stuff, like going to work, spending time with my family or actually playing golf, all of which trump watching golf.

:thup:

I might catch a little bit if it's on before I leave for work or the course, but I certainly wouldn't take a day off either to watch golf (or any other sport for that matter) on the TV!

 

[jp5]

The Americans have got it spot on really:

- lower ticket prices brings in bigger crowds and makes a better atmosphere. This upsets the purists who would rather have no-one on the course than a huge crowd with a couple of people yelling mashed potato.
- cheaper green fees - I looked up the cost of playing a round at one of the PGA tour courses and it was cheaper than a round at one my bog-standard local courses! Wow - not many sports can boast the ability to play on the same arena as the professionals do for an affordable amount, and it's possible over the pond.
- coverage - the production and commentary team on the US feeds really are talented at what they do. They make the event interesting, they have the right technology features and it all creates atmospheres which produce magic, memorable moments such as Kaymer's win last week.
- sacrifice of tradition to increase popularity. The stadium hole - great to watch.

Dare I say that the Americans have embraced the change required to push golf up there with the top sports in the US. Sadly the same isn't true over here and who can blame European golfers from aspiring to end up on with a PGA tour card.